What should I feed my puppy?

[Wnikat]

Puppy weaned on raw. 6 month old show cocker.

switched from puppy raw to adult at 4 months on advice of raw food company. Fine for a month then he seemed to react again something or he ate something which triggered an intolerance. Bad diarrhoea. Sorted that with boiled chicken diet reintroducing raw gradually

then decided to switch to kibble as raw too expensive. Now I completely messed up here, did it far too quickly as we were going on holiday and family member looking after him didn’t want to be bothered with raw. It’s Eden kibble and wasn’t too bad to begin with but he’s got progressively worse and I’ve had to stop it completely as the diarhea is so bad.

so we’re back on boiled chicken. Where do I go from here? Back to puppy raw and then gradually introduce a different less rich kibble and do it properly this time?

It does sound as if Jesse site to something.

If he was fine on the puppy raw, I'd be tempted to reintroduce that and see how he is.

Some of the very high quality dog foods may be fabulous ingredients etc. but that doesn't get away from the fact that some dogs just will not tolerate them. The best dog food is the best food for YOUR dog. A few times I've tried to move up to the really good foods, but my dogs who are very fit and healthy on a mid-level food just do not do well on them.

If you want to stick to kibble, I would 'move down' to a lower level but still decent quality one. Given the issues you've had, Arden Grange White Fish & Potato would be my suggestion.

My dpuppy quickly moved on to wallpaper and cushioned flooring....

Our local pet show owners who feed their dogs raw, give them Dr Clauder dog food in tins when they go away and need the convenience. They find the switch doesn't upset their dogs stomachs, but if your dog has an allergy to something that won't help.

My Labrador would have explosive diarrhoea and sickness randomly with any food I tried. Since using Pets at Home AVA hypoallergenic white fish dry food she's not had an incident.

My puppy, now seven months old, was reared on Royal Canin which gave him horribly soft poo. It seems he is sensitive to chicken. He's on a salmon-based kibble now and things are vastly improved. In a month he'll be moving to an adult food, so I shall be trying to find something that suits him.

I agree with this completely.

Lots of dogs will not do well on high-protein foods for a whole variety of reasons. My own dog has Harringtons which is pretty mid-range but he thrives on it. Healthy teeth, no allergies or intolerances, a healthy and shiny coat and good, firm solid poos that don't stink, plus no farts etc.

Don't feel pressured into feeding the most expensive food out there. Millions of dogs thrive on cheaper foods!

Some of the very high quality dog foods may be fabulous ingredients etc. but that doesn't get away from the fact that some dogs just will not tolerate them

This is so true and ours doesn't do well on the premium brands either.

Have a look at Millie's Wolfheart. You can call their customer service who are really friendly, and have a chat with them and they will advise you on the best mix of food that they have for your pup. My boys are on their 60/40 mix and their poop is now great. Hope this helps.

@Wnikat you can't feed raw and kibble!!! That's probably why they are having upset tummy. Feeding kibble lowers changes the ph in the guts making it more likely that bacteria survive the digestive process and cause illness. You should never feed kibble and raw.

Personally I would stick with raw food. It doesn't have to be expensive if you shop around and buy larger quantities at one time. It is far far better and more natural diet for your dog. You couldn't pay me to feed mine kibble!

Plenty of dogs can't tolerate a raw diet, though

Dogs have been domesticated for thousands of years and, especially in this country, it's been a long time since any of them have had to genuinely scavenge and live off raw meat. Most will have been fed scraps, bones and leftover cooked meat from human meals, and that's what they've developed to be able to cope with.

My own dog gets raw treats and kibble/wet as his main meals. We've never had a single issue and I know loads of people who do exactly the same.

Lily’s kitchen wet food was good for my pup and convenient but pricey.

I used to feed Eden but I’m sure they must have changed the ingredients or something as my dog started to get loose stools which never had before. He was also quite skinny and didn’t have the best coat when on it, I was quite disappointed as it cost £90 a month for him. I moved to AVA large breed and his stools are perfect, he’s filled out a little but not too much and his coat is much better.

I would love to feed raw but it would be really expensive for my size of dog. I give raw bones and raw chunks/sprats as treats. I don’t give them at the same time as his kibble and he’s never had an issue before. I also don’t think raw is the best diet for every dog - I know plenty of dogs that look great on it but I also know plenty that are overweight with poor coats etc. Each dog is different and what suits them best will be different too.

You need to do the process slowly!

Eden is fab but ANY overfeed or rush will give loose poo. You must weigh to the gram with it.

Pup will have a loose poo issue whilst their gut microbiome changes but it will resolve if you transition slowly